


Song for You, and Me

by APenguinAteMySmarthphone



Category: Prince of Legend (TV), The Rampage from Exile Tribe (Band)
Genre: Aftermath, Contemplation, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First shot at something even remotely angsty, I just needed to write it before I forgot, I'm Sorry, Light Angst, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Self-Indulgent, Slight Possessiveness, is it really? I don't really know, once again this is purely self-indulegent, sorta - Freeform, that's my take on it, the events of the movie kinda messed them up, this literally is just me catering to myself and my hyper imagination, well in the later half
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:40:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24501736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/APenguinAteMySmarthphone/pseuds/APenguinAteMySmarthphone
Summary: Things going back to normal, reverting to the way they used to be, doesn't always constitute a "perfect, happy ending". Even after Koki returns from the Night Ring, the members of Team NEXT each struggle with their own thoughts and guilt, trying to handle the aftermath and their own emotions in their own respective ways.
Relationships: Hiura Kaiji/Odajima Riku, Hiura Kaiji/Tendo Koki, Hiura Kaiji/Tendo Koki/Odajima Riku, Odajima Riku/Tendo Koki
Kudos: 4





	Song for You, and Me

**Author's Note:**

> Differing perspectives between Riku and Kaiji, who both have their own views and takeaways after the events of Kizoku Kourin. Even after everything has, seemingly, been resolved, they still have a lot to reevaluate about themselves and how they view one another.
> 
> Or my attempts to write more shipping content because all the content I come up with is likely not gonna come out unless I get off my lazy butt and actually write it on my own.
> 
> I really like the characters of POL, even if the story (at least the original) isn't exactly stellar, alright. I can offer no excuses.

Everyone seems to think that, following Koki's return after the chaos with the Night Ring and the near-downfall of their school, Team NEXT is back to normal. That they got their "happy ending", and thus nothing has changed; as if Koki's return was equivalent to slotting a missing puzzle piece into its spot, completing a large, gorgeous picture. In everyone's minds, the "gorgeous picture" was the resumption of Team NEXT's usual activities and friendship. They, naturally, believed that the return of their leader and center signified a return to normal (although _normal_ was a bit of a stretch considering the usual daily activities of this school) and happier times.

What they all ー aside from those directly involved with the events of the Night Ring ー failed to take into account, Riku mused, was the turbulence of emotions that _everyone_ involved had suffered: betrayals, tested friendships and beliefs, family; the whole package deal. It was as if some deity had glanced upon their already odd school life and decided that a little more suffering was in order; as if their lives had always been the sparkly, rosy movie the other students painted of them. As if no one suffered outside the school walls with personal issues they would ever dare admit to, even knowing that they had companions to support them.

(Whenever he mused on this, he would immediately conjure images of a familiar head of red hair, and would feel a sharp twinge of pain afterwards. It was a recurring pattern in his life, recently.)

When Riku had learned of Koki's ー he hesitated to say betrayal, because _what_ had they been loyal to, exactly? No one had explicitly told them their loyalties should be tied to a school they would only be attending for a few years (although everyone else seemed to view it that way) ー deflection, for lack of better phrase, he'd been more confused than hurt. While Kaiji had ranted angrily, repeating to himself the same questions ー Why? Why? ー he had merely stood as rigid as a statue. He was sure he'd been making the face of one struck abruptly by lightning on a sunny day. Ryu had later ー sympathetically, because he was nicer than he let himself admit ー told him as much.

The heartbreak had come the night after, when he had unconsciously called Koki over the phone, intending to ask if he wanted to go out over the weekend, and had received a message, delivered in the cold and emotionless tones of the operator, informing him the number he had dialed was no longer available. He later learned that Koki had temporarily deactivated his phone and had been using the one provided to him at the club. 

Before Koki had returned, Kaiji and Riku had temporarily asked Ryu to join their team; for a short while, seeing as his brother ー for reasons no one could even begin to guess at ー had run off and joined the nobles. It had been more of an alliance-like arrangement; a team-up intended to take back the people important to them from what they perceived as the "enemy". Yet in the back of his mind Riku had been afraid that the reason they had called on Ryu was their way of getting back at Koki; to punish him, in essence, for his betrayal, and to hurt him back in the same manner. Even though he knew that that wasn't the original reason, ー at least, he'd had no such thoughts or intentions when he had made the request of their delinquent friend ー but once they had teamed up, the thought had nagged at him, like a dark and malignant spider building a web in his thoughts. And the guilt only grew, once he learned of Koki's circumstances (which had tied into _why_ Takato had even gone over to the other side in the first place), and once their friend had returned to him. Every now and then, the memory of thinking in such a way flitted back into his mind, and he felt a vague sense of unrest, murky and uncomfortable.

Koki's return, he realized, had been marred by a myriad of emotions; Koki's guilt, and both Kaiji and Riku's unease. While he couldn't say the same for Kaiji, Riku had realized, about a month after Koki had come back, that he was _afraid_ that their friend had been hurt by their "replacing" (although they'd never had any such intention, no matter what dark thoughts had crossed either of their minds) him. Even though he knew Koki would _never_ stoop to thinking such low and petty things about his friends, the idea hurt Riku. 

So, contrary to everyone's expectations, Team NEXT wasn't quite at their "happily ever after". Where everyone tried to wrap the story nicely up, although things were still far from resolved, complicated emotions or no, the three friends were desperately trying to rearrange the recent craziness into their lives neatly, in a way that let them move on peacefully and continue with the "before". There was no template for the "after", and they didn't know _where_ they could possibly begin, although he had a guess. Actually, he was pretty sure they _all_ had a guess, the same one, but none of them was ready to move in that direction, not quite yet. He and Kaiji, he knew, were perfectly fine with the idea; had actually been pretty positive of it _before_ all the craziness. All they had to do was wait for their third member to come to terms with it, or at least consider it, give it some thought of his own. 

But now this new... awkwardness interferes with their progress, surely causing Koki even more guilt and stress, which makes Riku want to reassure him all the more; they're fine with whatever answer he has to give, and they'll still love him all the same no matter what.

_Even when you tried to get back at him in that way, however small?_ says a nasty voice in his head, but he opts to ignore it. Surely his friend, who has always felt guilt more heavily than the average person for anything ー _felt_ more heavily in general ー is suffering from the same voices. No matter what nasty thoughts he entertained ー and he knows, with another unpleasant twinge of unease, that he had been thinking them ー he still _wants_ Koki, the same way he has always wanted Kaiji, who he knows feels the same way on both accounts. Their former intimacy ー even between Kaiji and Riku ー seems to be hanging on weathering ropes; still strong, but worn down from the recent stress, but it's still there, and slowly, Riku wants to bring it back, even if it takes them well past their school years, well past their activities as simply just NEXT. 

When he comes to the school in the morning, he always wraps a friendly arm around their shortest member's shoulders. He lets himself touch the other with more frequency; it was more intimacy and closeness than he had allowed himself previously, under the ever-watchful eyes of the team's many fans (contrary to expectations, he rather dislikes using the word, but there's really no other term for them that fits so adequately). Whenever he runs his fingers, gently, through the other's hair, combing it, he can feel Koki stiffening slightly at the touch; less, he realizes, out of discomfort, and more so because he can't seem to believe that they would both show him the same sort of treatment, would still show indication of their desire to include him in their ー slowly ー evolving relationship. Ever since he came back, Koki had seemed to revert to treating it like a thing between just the two of them, similar to his attitude in middle school, when they had invited him to be their friend. 

It pains him, to know Koki intentionally measures the distance between them in such a manner; first because he believed the two to be far out of his league, and now because he believes he doesn't deserve the closeness the two of them offer. Even when they make it apparent they want him with them, despite everything, he still lets his guilt trick him into thinking otherwise. Not that Riku has any room to talk; he himself is not a bright mass of emotions, and when he thinks of the temporary nastiness between the three of them, he wonders if he is really worthy of any of them. If someone who can think such low and nasty thoughts, however fleeting, deserves such balance and happiness in his life.

But he _wants_ them, logic and righteousness be damned; whether he deserves them or not, he still _wants_ to be with them. He wants to reaffirm their closeness, and he wants to one day proudly be able to claim them both, and for them to be able to claim him. It's a prospect that makes him blush, just thinking of it, but it makes his heart flutter all the same. 

And Koki, regardless of what he thinks, is beautiful and shining, like his name, and just as he and Kaiji are close in that way, he wants their red-haired companion in that equation. So regardless of anyone's guilt, he needs to ensure that the "happy ending" they haven't quite grasped becomes an undeniable reality. Then, those cheerful voices proclaiming their relief at everything being "back to normal" can go about making whatever assumptions they wished. 

Even today, he wraps one arm around Kaiji and one around Koki, dragging the two of them close to him as if to stick them as close to him as possible, voice bright and cheery as he proposes they go to the nearby game center after school. Kaiji immediately answers in the affirmative, but playfully says that he'll have to buy them lunch. And Koki slowly, but with determined brightness, agrees as well, nodding along with Kaiji's joking tone. The colors around them seem to brighten considerably, and when the redhead gives a laugh, clear like crystal, he feels more validated than when he had received a trophy for a dancing tournament he had entered when he was still in elementary school.

Team NEXT does not have their happy ending, but Riku is more content to believe they're getting there.

* * *

Kaiji knew that there were times he could be unreasonable and overly emotional, contrary to the image others set of him. When Koki had betrayed their school ー although Riku kept telling him to lay off with the word "betrayal" ー he had been furious. Angry enough to denounce his friend, for a short while, until he came to his senses and reaffirmed the glaring gap their center had left behind. It was the first ー and hopefully last ー time he had cried in front of anyone outside their team (Ryu, in this situation). When Ryu had gotten angry on their behalf, he'd felt immensely relieved, but had been struck with a sort of hopeless despair at the idea that Koki would never come back. 

He and Riku really, and truly, had felt crushed. When Riku had invited Ryu to their team temporarily, he had given his own affirmative with a sort of reckless abandon, not thinking any further than that if Koki saw and got hurt, maybe it would convince him to reclaim his spot from the guy he considered his "rival". He hadn't, at the time, realized Riku's own feelings on the matter, not until he had admitted to them a week after Koki's return. Riku had looked crushed; guilt was obviously eating at him, although he insisted that the guilt must be hurting Koki worse. He'd hugged him, for a long, long time, until his cat had jumped on both of them, effectively breaking the spell of the moment and embarrassing the two somewhat.

Koki's actions had left them both feeling far more scarred and injured then any of the three of them had given any credit for; never had they imagined the sheer and utter heartbreak it would cause. Koki, too, must have been startled; when Ryu had confronted him and told him they had been crying (which they wanted to deny but decided against, for once), he had seemed genuinely shocked that they had been so torn by his deflection. This consequently had been eating _him_ up in turn; one look at the slight hints of guilt flickering at the corner of his smiles nowadays spoke volumes of his guilt.

As weird as he knew it sounded, the feelings of betrayal and hurt had been accompanied by a strange sort of fierce possessive jealousy, which had only been fanned further when he had seen Koki standing there, side by side with the nobles when they had entered Dory's club (again with the strange names). He hadn't really given it much thought, opting instead to focus on his emotional wounds, but he could still remember the strange, uncomfortable feeling he had gotten as he'd seen that host simply _touch_ Koki, under the chin. He likely hadn't thought much of it ー an elegant action fit for a noble, perhaps ー but it had bothered _him,_ to say the least. 

But what bothered him most was when he had heard that Koki had been made to sing for the guests at the club.

It was no secret that their friend's voice was beautiful; Kaiji himself, although he rarely praised anyone honestly without teasing, always found himself completely enraptured by the sheer beauty of it. Without knowing, he had gained a small sense of satisfaction from knowing that he was of the few who had actually heard the voice singing, albeit in a small and cramped karaoke box. Like it was his, and Riku's, and sometimes Ryu's, whenever he tagged along. At some point, he had been struck with a sort of baseless relief that they, no one else, were the only ones who had ever been exposed to the raw emotion of Koki's singing, and would always be. That it was theirs.

It wasn't supposed to be used to entertain adult women seeking the company of men at some fancy host club, he thought vehemently.

There were times when, after Koki's return, Kaiji felt a raw, carnal jealousy towards them, ー the hosts and the guests whom Koki had surrounded himself with ー the ones who had all heard and been touched by that pure singing voice, shining like stars; a siren song, aching and beautiful. Even with Koki back with them, where he belonged, Kaiji would look at him and feel a small touch of unease; he couldn't help but be struck by the idea that Koki wasn't really _theirs_ anymore, no longer just a part of the bond they called NEXT. As if he had grown too many bonds in a world none of them wanted him to be associated with, and he had no idea how to get him out. 

When he went to talk to Ryu about it ー because he _really_ didn't want to have to explain this to Riku, who seemed to have his own ideas about the matter ー Ryu had stared at him for point five seconds before snorting, "It's because you love him, you dumbass."

Well, that was obvious. But Kaiji didn't really know what he could do with these weirder emotions that came with the territory; he was dimly aware of Riku's own feelings, which were blindingly pure in comparison to his own.

"So, you're jealous." Ryu laughs again; really, it's not that funny. 

"I wouldn't worry. One look and I can tell; he loves you both, too. So what if those hosts got to see him sing, or treated him like he's theirs. It doesn't change the fact that he's yours, does it? He came back to _you,_ and if you can't figure out what that entails, then I'm not gonna help you anymore."

He knows. Really, he does. 

But it doesn't make him feel any happier about it.

Later on, when it's just the two of them ー Riku had left his bag in the classroom, so they had decided to wait for him by the gates ー he's struck by the same confused emotions, and before he thinks, he finds himself placing a hand, gently, on the shorter's cheek, not caring that there are still a scant handful of students walking through the gates, consequently passing them by. He doesn't care; not now, at least, and he contends himself with rubbing the other's cheek with the flat of his thumb, softly, marveling at its softness. Koki seemed too surprised to make a noise of protest; he gazed up at Kaiji questioningly, with wide eyes staring straight into his own, and he felt a surge of overwhelming protectiveness as he moved his hand from caressing Koki's cheek to gently running it through his red hair. 

Normally ー or at least, prior to the events of the Night Ring ー Koki would have protested against such an obvious show of intimacy; not out of shame or fear of being seen, but from pure feelings of pleased embarrassment, like that of a teen going on a date with a childhood crush. He had, at first, brushed off such actions as resulting from Kaiji and Riku treating him like a child. In truth, all of them had known this to not be the case; they weren't so immature as to fool themselves with such pointless lies, but Koki had always reacted with a protest, as if surrendering himself to touch was some admission of defeat. But now Koki almost sank into the touch, not seeming to mind the passerby, merely letting Kaiji's hand run gently over his head, before tracing itself back to its initial spot on the side of his face. 

The relationship Team NEXT maintained, normally, on school grounds was at best that of the closest of friends. Not out of shame or any such ridiculous reasons, but because their status at the school, whether they liked it or not, was close to that of celebrities, and thus they didn't want to give anyone any ammunition for any immature or tasteless stories. Never had they shared such a moment of raw intimacy, so unguarded and vulnerable, and almost desperate, as if in doing so they had reaffirmed the need to seek one another's touch. As Koki closed his eyes in response to Kaiji's continued hold, he began to hum softly, the soft sound like elixir to the ears, and Kaiji felt a small thrill and admittedly tasteless sense of victory; no matter what those men and women had seen or heard, no matter what love song Koki had woven into the microphone, surely they would never know of _this_ side of him; the vulnerability with which he surrendered himself to touch, softly humming away in an almost hypnotic manner.

If the events of the Night Ring had never happened, he's sure he would take advantage of this moment and maybe kiss him, seeing how open he's allowed himself to become, but he can't say for sure whether the vulnerability he shows is a result of being so alone and starved for emotion (for what did the clubs of the night do but hide their emotions behind a display of grandeur?) or not. It's hard to hold back his own emotions, desperate and overflowing, but he instead opts to press his own forehead to the other's, using his other hand to cup the other cheek, gently. Koki closes his eyes too, there's a hint of relief, and exhaustion, and Kaiji fleetingly remembers what Riku had said about happy endings and how they needed to work towards their own.

They're not quite there yet, but looking at this moment now, he thinks, he's sure they're getting closer.

**Author's Note:**

> Riku strikes me as the all-inclusive kind of guy, who tends to focus on the greater picture of things than the more specific contents of his emotions. Hence, he thinks more of the aftermath and its effects on all 3 of them, and how they'll move forward from now on. 
> 
> Kaiji gives me the impression of being more emotional than his looks suggest; everyone thinks he's the "cool guy", but he can get surprisingly passionate, although he himself has trouble admitting to it. So his focus is more on Koki himself than the "aftermath", although his focus on Koki in this fic is derived from the aftermath. Also, he kinda strikes me as the more possessive type, but not in a yandere/obsessive kind of way. 
> 
> It's hard to explain, but this is my take on it. It's hard to write angst without trying to explain/justify yourself and your reasoning (at least for me), so this is a short summary on my takeaway that led to this (self-indulgent) fic. 
> 
> I also didn't feel like splitting this up into two chapters, mainly because... I don't know. My logic took a hike when I finished writing this.
> 
> In case it wasn't clear; it's a (what's the English word for this, polygamous?) three-way relationship, but not quite there yet. Koki struggles with relationships (a hopeless/awkward romantic, if you will).
> 
> As weird and confusing as it likely is, I hope you enjoyed reading. Please leave a kudos and/or a comment, if you have the time, and thank you very much for reading.


End file.
